Help Line: Disable outbound scan to fix email glitch

HELP LINEOutbound scan can be disabled to revive emailDeck goes here and herey here and herey here

JAY LEE, FOR THE CHRONICLE

Published 5:30 am, Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Q: I've recently upgraded to Norton Internet Security 2011 and find now that when I send an email, I sometimes get a message from Norton that says "error 421 unexpected failure, please try later." Do you have any idea how to fix this?

A: Norton has published a solution to this very problem. Apparently there is an issue with scanning outbound emails using Norton's product in conjunction with Windows Live Mail and Microsoft Outlook. To resolve this, Norton suggests disabling the scanning of outbound email. The article at tinyurl.com/nortonhelpline describes how to do this.

Latest News Video

I usually don't enable virus scanning of outbound email anyway. My reasoning is that I am scanning inbound email and all other files and that makes scanning outbound email unnecessary.

I've also found that letting my antivirus program scan outbound email tends to make my email program sluggish and sometimes unresponsive. I don't think that I have ever found an antivirus program that doesn't cause a problem in this regard, so I tend to turn this option off by default. If you feel you need to scan outbound messages, I suggest contacting Norton support. Norton may have a software update or a configuration change its staff can walk you through.

Q: I recently installed Internet Explorer 9 on my Windows 7 computer. When I downloaded it I was informed that if I wanted to revert to IE8, I could go to Control Panel, open Programs and Features and uninstall IE9, and my PC would revert to IE8. Problem is, there is no listing for IE9 in Programs and Features. How do I remove it?

A: Microsoft considers Internet Explorer to be a part of the operating system rather than an independent or stand-alone application. So when you upgrade your version of IE, it does not show up as a program, but as an update.

To revert to the previous version of IE, start in Programs and Features in the Control Panel, as instructed. But since IE9 is considered an update, you have to click on the "View installed updates" link on the left.

Once you select that, be patient. The more updates you have installed, the longer it may take for the next window to pop up. When it does, you will see a list of all the Microsoft updates on your PC. Scroll through the list until you find Windows Internet Explorer 9.

Then, simply double-click it and the update will uninstall. After you reboot, your computer will be running Internet Explorer 8 again.

I recently updated my system to Internet Explorer 9, and so far I'm unimpressed. In fact, I find it to be buggy and prone to locking up. If you are not satisfied with the performance of Internet Explorer, you can always install an alternative such as Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox. These are stand-alone Web browsers, and I have found both to be much more reliable than Internet Explorer.

It is worth noting that you can install as many Web browsers on your computer as you like. And you can run them all simultaneously if you are so inclined.

Write Jay Lee at helpline@chron.com. You can view more questions and answers at the Help Line Blog at http://blogs.chron.com/helpline. Lee co-hosts the radio showTechnology Bytesfrom 8 to 10 p.m. Wednesdays on KPFT 90.1 FM. The program is also available at www.geekradio.com. Lee cannot personally answer all reader questions.